Stabilizing the Foundations

            We live in a great nation, don’t we?  I mean from sea to shining sea, America is a great land in almost every possible way.  Although being Americans makes us better than no one, the fact that we are so blessed by Almighty God augments our responsibilities within the world community.

            Further, living under such great freedom and protection that our nation provides, we as believers also enjoy the freedom that comes through Jesus Christ—the truth that always sets men free.  But we must never forget that these freedoms were handed to us by our fore-fathers. From the earliest arrivals aboard the Mayflower in 1620, they came with a vision, a dream, and a commitment to the Heavenly Father, whom they readily identified and named in their daily prayers for guidance, protection, and sustenance.

            While our president may not know or understand the history of this great nation, I do—and let me take a few moments to remind you from the pages of our rich history, lest any of you might buy into some of what comes from the Oval Office these days—statements like “America is not a Christian nation and never has been.”

1620 Mayflower Compact – “In the name of God … having undertaken for the glory of God and advancement of the Christian faith … do solemnly and mutually in the presence of God covenant and combine ourselves together … “

1643 Constitution of the New England Confederation – “Whereas we all come into these parts of America with one and the same end and aim, namely to advance the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ and to enjoy the liberties of the Gospel in purity and peace.”

1681 William Penn stated – “Men must be governed by God or they will be ruled by tyrants.

1752 Liberty Bell – inscribed with this verse from Leviticus 25:10 – “Proclaim liberty through all the land and to all the inhabitants thereof.”

1772 Samuel Adams – boldly proclaimed, “The rights of the Colonists as Christians … may be best understood by reading and carefully studying the institution of the Great Law Giver and Head of the Christian Church, which are to be found clearly written and promulgated in the New Testament.”

1776 Declaration of Independence – “ … the laws of Nature and Nature’s God … that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights …

1789 George Washington – in his Thanksgiving Day proclamation said, “Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly implore His protection, aid, and favors … “

1820 Daniel Webster said – “more than all, a government and a country were to commence, with the very first foundations laid under Divine light of the Christian religion … Who would wish that his country’s existence had otherwise begun?  Let us not forget the religious character of our origin.”

1863 Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address – “ … that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom and that government of the people, by the people, and for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

             But something has dramatically changed—something perhaps less visible than an industrial revolution—but something infinitely more damning to our nation than anything we can imagine.  America has forgotten God!  And for the many who have not totally forgotten God, there is often an unprecedented ambivalence and indifference toward His Word and His principles for successful living.

            (Psalm 9:17 KJV) The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.

            Our national dereliction of duty God-ward has brought us to the precipice of ethical, moral, and spiritual collapse!  We have become a nation of politicians without principles and devoid of character—we have to look no further than Detroit, Michigan or inside the Washington beltway to find that confirmation!  Washington, D.C. has become a collective cesspool of dishonesty, graft, greed, and a thousand other characteristics devoid of Godly character!  But American did not begin that way.

            As the character level of America continues to drop, we have become a nation of pleasure-seekers without conviction, businesses without morality, and sciences without humanity.  We have grown fat with knowledge, while starving good character and integrity.  And even our churches are losing our passion for evangelism, while offering a vain worship without sacrifice.

            But, ladies and gentlemen, there are three timeless truths on which I base my eternal hope, as I look past the tragic political events that each day brings, and I would remind you of these three:

• God is still on His throne—and nothing will dislodge Him
• God distinguishes between those who are righteous and those who are wicked
• God is holy and will certainly judge all wickedness

            What then is the great and pressing need of our day as we look at America?  If we listen to the political strategists and Washington’s rhetoric, we need more Democrats or we need more Republicans in office.  If we listen to the social engineers, we need to liberate ourselves and our children from the moralist constraints put on us by previous, prudish generations. If we listen to the secularist educators, the need is for more government money to be thrown into the black hole of humanistic education—an educational system that is increasingly void of God.

(Rom 1:28 KJV)  And even as they did not want to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient.

            The great reality is that people need the Lord!  The hope of America is not in electing different politicians, neither is it in shutting down abortion clinics, noble though that may be.  While putting the pornographer out of business and shutting down strip clubs is to be applauded, that isn’t the solution!  Joining the ranks of tree-huggers and hypocritical eco-freaks like Al Gore is wasted time and resources! 

            The solution is exactly what it has always been and where it has always been—In God We Trust!

(2 Chron 7:14 KJV)  If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal our land.

            The combined repetitive prophecies of Glen Beck, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, and Rush Limbaugh will not turn America around—economically, morally, or spiritually. 

But if the people who know God will draw close to Him, honor and obey Him—will let their lights so shine before men—will determine to be salt with savor—we might be able to rescue perhaps the greatest nation in human history before she plunges headlong over the cliff from which there will be no return.

My pastor Dr. John Marine of the North Auburn Hills Baptist Church asked this question a few Sundays ago:  “Which side are you on?”  Are you a part of the problem or a part of the solution?

(1 Cor 3:11 KJV)  For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

(2 Tim 2:19 KJV) Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.